Everyone knows that keeping the surface of your tracks smooth is step one of a happy dryer system.

Resurfacing track/tires creates a flat level surface, which:

• Eliminates pitting and prevents cracking

• Eliminates vibration by removing ripples in track

• Prolongs life of bearings, trunnions, thrust rollers and the track/tires itself

• Improves dryer tracking performance & reduced trunnion adjustment

Uzelac is able to resurface MEC drum track/tries, safely and efficiently, minimizing downtime.

Before

After

REPLACING END TRACK/TIRES

Uzelac also has the ability to replace track/tires located in the end of your dryer drum using proven, tried and true methods.

REPLACING IN-BOARD TRACK/TIRES

Uzelac is also proud to offer a new, alternative technology to replace in-board tracks.

Our process reduces downtime during replacement by over 50%. We completely eliminate the need to cut-off the end of the drum to replace the track/tires.

As just one example, we replaced the in-board track on a 12’ x 72’ MEC drum for a customer in Dallas. This drum has been running for over 6 months without any issue. Our technology saved the Dallas facility over 130 hours of downtime, compared to the traditional process.

In the words of one happy customer, “It’s been six months and I haven’t even had to touch my trunnions yet!”

For a free consultation, call us today at (620)325-2269 or visit us at 409 Main Street, Neodesha, KS 66757.

Plant- and animal-based energy sources are not only fueling large-scale industrial operations. They are
also starting to fuel cars, trucks, trains, and barges. While these biofuels are still up and coming, they
are poised to change the world energy market. Here are our top six biofuels to watch.

1. Corn Ethanol

If you let corn ferment, it produces an alcohol called ethanol. Because of corn ethanol’s chemical
similarity to gasoline, it has been an easy way to replace the petroleum-based fuel. Processing ethanol is
inexpensive, and it’s an alternative way to use corn, which we have a significant surplus of in the US.

The single hiccup with this biofuel is how much oil is required to get it to market. To plant, grow,
harvest, process, and ship corn ethanol, manufacturers create a large ecological footprint. That being said,
corn ethanol is a great short-term substitute for petroleum fuel.

2. Sugar Cane

In warmer parts of the world like South America, the go-to biofuel is based on sugar cane. Like corn
ethanol, the alcohol from sugar cane is a byproduct of the plant’s fermentation process. The alcohol is then
converted into a fuel, often blended with gasoline.

Currently, sugar cane is the second most prevalent biofuel after corn. Sugar cane ethanol has helped South
American countries to reclaim a larger part of their energy market. The only side effect this inexpensive and
effective biofuel has is its negative tendency to form a gum inside older car engines.

3. Cellulose

The US Forest Products Laboratory has been developing a technology that converts cellulose materials into
sugar, and then converts that sugar into biofuel. If scientists at the Wisconsin lab succeed, they will have
created one of the cheapest, cleanest-burning fuels in the world.

You can find cellulose in nearly all plant matter, which makes it a very inexpensive commodity. For
example, after a farmer harvests his or her corn crops, he or she has a huge amount of husks left over.

These husks contain cellulose that, if converted into a biofuel, would represent residual income for the
farmer. Therefore, in addition to the environmental potential this product brings, it also could have a major
economic impact.

4. Algal Oil

Half of the weight in algae is made up of fat. Scientists have been rendering that fat into oil and
testing it as a clean jet fuel.

Algae has tremendous potential as a biodiesel fuel. It doesn’t compete with other biofuels because it
doesn’t grow on land. It grows quickly and in abundance, producing 300 times more oil than land-based biomass
sources. When burned in an engine, the byproduct also doesn’t release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

5. Camelina

Camelina is a member of the mustard family. This three-foot plant grows quickly, producing pods full of
oily seeds. The oil content of Camelina ranges from 35% to 38%. Once the seeds are crushed, the oil can be
extracted and processed into a highly efficient biofuel. The crushed seeds then get converted into feed for
livestock.

6. Animal Fat

In large animal farms, leftover fat from butchered meat gets collected as waste and often goes into a
landfill. Instead of tossing the fat, farmers may have the chance to sell it as biomass. Energy scientists
can render animal fat into oil, which can be converted into biodiesel. Commercial forms of animal-based
biodiesel are being tested.

As the biomass industry progresses, it will take over a larger section of the world energy market. Some of
these biofuels represent short-term solutions to the energy crisis. Some of them have the potential to be
major, long-term replacements for petroleum-based fuel.

If you and your company are ready to use biomass energy sources, contact our Wisconsin biomass processing
company for more information.

As Europe increases its use of wood pellets to supplement coal as an energy source, U.S. wood pellet producers are exporting more pellets across “the pond.” From 2012 to 2013, wood pellet exports from the U.S. nearly doubled, with more than 98% of all exports shipping to Europe, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

In 2013, the U.S. was the world’s top wood pellet-producing country (5.7 million metric tons), followed by Germany (2.2 million metric tons) and Canada (1.8 million metric tons), according to the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization. When it came to exporting wood pellets, the U.S. and Canada topped the list.

Europe’s increasing demand for wood pellets has been driven mainly by requirements of the European Union’s climate and energy use goals for 2020. In response, new pellet processing plants are appearing in the U.S., especially in southeast and mid-Atlantic states accessible to wood harvesting areas and shipping ports. Some of these new plants can produce 500,000 metric tons of wood pellets per year. [Read more…] about Europe’s Use of Wood Pellets for Energy is Fueling U.S. Opportunity

If you’ve been following our blog, you’ve learned (or been reminded) of all of the ways in which the volume of food waste is addressed in the beef and poultry industry. The rendering industry has stepped in to address the needs of those producing our meat, but there are many other types of food waste.

In addition to our customers in the meat rendering industry, we do business with other types of food waste recyclers. One of our customers, Custom Blenders, offers removal and recycling services to commercial bakeries and other confectionary food manufacturers. Like the meat industry, these services help many food manufacturers reach recycling goals and reduce waste output. The bakery waste collected is recycled into high-energy animal feed ingredients that prove quite popular among feed producers.

Recycling food waste is beneficial for many reasons, not the least of which is a respect for our environment. By reducing the amount of material that is put into landfills from bakery waste, and by supplying an economical advantage to both bakeries and the end users of the animal feed, Custom Blenders is in a great position in the industry, and it’s no wonder they’ve seen great success and growth. The flexible capabilities of their removal and transportation services combined with the support of our custom dryers make us a great team for responsible bakery waste treatment and repurposing.

We’re proud to partner with companies like Custom Blenders to take advantage of technology to help reduce process waste from other industries and make a useful product out of material that would otherwise end up doing more harm than good.

“The dedication to our needs by the Uzelac Industries team should be the model for all customer vendor relations. There remain many byproducts in need of more friendly recycling solutions. Uzelac Industries has been helpful in assisting us with solutions to those problems. We look forward to working with Uzelac on future projects as our growth will require.” said Adam Cowan, Special Projects and Business Development from Custom Blenders.

At Uzelac Industries, we have always cared about high quality products and outstanding customer service more than winning awards. That said, we are genuinely honored (and thrilled) to be a first-year winner in the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce’s annual list of rapidly growing companies, the “Future 50”. This honor is a testament to our founder, Mike Uzelac’s, vision and commitment. Combining and rejuvenating old line small business and weathering one of the worst recessions in American history is a tough thing to pull off (to put it mildly), but not only have we made it, we’ve thrived. Since we started, we have more than doubled our facility’s initial square footage and added quite a few jobs. It is helpful that the market for biofuel and biomass technology has begun to gain traction over the past decade. Every day, scientists and researchers are finding new ways to use organic wastes to power the homes, businesses, and transportation of the future. It is a truly exciting time to be involved with biomass and biofuels, and it’s nice that others recognize the future when they see it! These new markets, along with our valued customer base in the Rendering Industry, have greatly contributed to our success.

While we serve clients all across the country and the globe, we are quite proud of our involvement in bettering the local business community. We have always felt that our core values come directly from the inspiring people of the Midwest, especially those in the Milwaukee area. Therefore, we just wanted to thank everyone at the MMAC for this honor, and we hope we can add even more jobs and revenue to the area in the next few years.

For as long as most people can remember, downsizing and outsourcing have been a major part of the American business landscape. There’s no doubt that a lot of companies have improved their bottom lines thanks to cheaper overseas workers or smaller shops. But at Uzelac Industries, the idea of outsourcing or ignoring our commitment to our community never even crossed our minds. Uzelac Industries is a combination of two old-line Milwaukee businesses brought together into one modern and innovative company. We might be a dynamic design/build manufacturing company, which utilizes only state-of-the-art machinery and technology, but we have never lost touch with our Rust Belt values. What some might refer to as “old-fashioned values” are simply “values” to us. A commitment to customers, community, and employees never has and will never go out of style. Things like personalized service, American-made capital equipment, and Union employees are all important to making us who we are.

Both of the companies that comprise Uzelac Industries, Industrial MetalFab and Duske Drying Systems, thrive due to this strong belief in a greater sense of awareness beyond just the factory gates. A great example of this is our journeyman sheet metal workers. Unlike our competitors, our proud and highly- skilled sheet metal workers take projects from start to finish. They take the steel off the truck; they fabricate it, and then prepare it for shipping. No outsourcing, no compromises, no corners cut. We can do all of this while maintaining competitive prices, unbelievable customer service, well-known quality, and quick turnaround times.

This blog will not only be an opportunity for us to share all our latest and exciting projects involving our direct-fired rotary dryers and custom metal fabrication, but will also hopefully demonstrate our commitment to Rust Belt values, and how that makes Uzelac Industries a great company, both to work with and work at.